Unitized stamp set



March 28, 1967 P. A. DAVID ETAL UNITIZED STAMP SET 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 1, 1966 40; ,4; DAV/D A/EQMAA/ 4. LEA/Z INVENTORI BY W1 7, drive/V674 March 28, 1967 P. A. DAVID ETAL 3,311,227

UNITIZED STAMP SET Filed Feb. 1, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORJ ma, 4 sy g drive/V54 United States Patent O 3,311,227 UNITIZEI) STAB/II SET Paul A. David, 8845 Pierce Drive, Buena Park, Cflif. 90620, and Herman L. Lenz, 930 S. State College Blvd., Anaheim, Calif. 92805 Filed Feb. 1, 1966, Ser. No. 524,236 1 Claim. (Cl. 206-47) The present invention relates to a unitized stamp set, having a plurality of stamps which are housed in a single container in readiness for immediate usage when the lid of the container is removed.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a unitized stamp set, in which each stamp, regardless of its size or the color of ink with which it is used, is ready at all times for immediate stamping usage.

Another object of the invention is to provide a unitized stamp set which maybe easily carried from one working location to another, without inconvenience or loss of time or loss of efficiency.

A further object of the invention is to provide a unitized stamp set having stamps which are particularly well adapted for hand gripping and which, by virtue of the construction of both the holder for the stamps and the stamps themselves, involves substantially no risk of getting ink on the fingers of the user.

The objects and advantages of the invention will be more fully understood from the following description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the stamp set when the lid is closed;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the stamp set when the lid is open and the set is ready for use;

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view of the box;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary vertical cross sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a typical stamp.

Referring now to the drawings, the stamp holder which is generally indicated by the reference numeral 10, includes a box 11 and a lid 15. The box 11 is preferably integrally made of plastic material, and includes a horizontal bottom wall 12 as well as upstanding end and inside walls of which the wall 13 is typical. The box 11 also includes several divider walls 14, which rise vertically from the bottom wall 12 to the same height as the end and side walls '13. In this manner, the box 11 provides a plurality of separate compartments which are elongated and of substantially rectangular configuration. It is also preferred to include in the box one div-ider wall 14b which runs transversely, as shown in FIGURE 3, although all the other walls 14 run longitudinally of the box. The purpose of divider wall 14b is to create a special compartment of approximately square configuration in which the two stamps 21a and 2112 are received (see FIGURE 3).

Each of the separate compartments of the box contains a separate flexible ink reservoir pad, disposed in the bottom of the compartment, of which the pads 30 and 31, shown in FIGURE 4, are typical.

As seen in FIGURES 2 and 3, the stamp set of the present invention includes a number of stamps of different sizes. That is to say, the stamps are all of the same vertical dimension, but dilIer in so far as the length and width of their printing portions are concerned. As shown in FIGURE 3, the two largest stamps 21a and 21b occupy a substantially square compartment; the next group of stamps which are of lesser width, include the stamps 22a, 22b and 220, which occupy a single elongated compartment; and stamps 22d, 222e, and 22 which occupy another elongated compartment.

All of the other compartments of the box 11 are Patented Mar. 28, I967 narrower, and will not accept any of the stamps 21 or 22. This feature of the present invention is particularly significant since it is preferred to use one special color of ink in the ink reservoir pad for the stamps 21, and another special color of ink in the ink reservoir pad for the stamps 22. The stamps 21 are too wide to be received in the compartments for the stamps 22; and the stamps 22 are too wide to be received in any of the remaining compartments of the box.

The stamp set also includes narr'ow stamp 23a to 231', inclusive, and 24a to 241, inclusive. The stamps 23 and stamps 24 are of the same width, but stamps 24 are shorter in length than the stamps 23.

Reference is now made to FIGURES 4 and 5, illustrating the structure of a typical stamp 22d. The stamp is preferably of hollow plastic construction, and has end walls 35 and 36, which are relatively wider at the bottom and relatively narrower at the top. The top portion of end wall 35 is designated as 39', while the top portion of end wall 36 is designated as 41. A flat top plate 46 extends between the end walls 35 and 36, being spaced a short distance below the top extremities 39 and 41 of those end walls. It is, therefore, convenient to place on the top plate 41 a sticker on which the printed material, carried by the stamp, is written, i.e., the label for the particular stamp.

The stamp 22d also includes a pair of vertically corrugated wall portions 42, which extend vertically downward from the edges of the top plate 40. Side wall 37 and 38 (see FIGURE 4) extend between the lower extremities of the end walls 35 and 36. Since the end walls become narrower at their tops, these side walls 37 and 38 slope inwardly as they extend upwardly, see FIGURE 4. But the corrugated wall sections 42 extend vertically downward from the top plate 46, rather than being sloped outwardly, hence the lower ends of the corrugated walls 42 are set inwardly from the respective side walls 37 and 38. The structure of the stamp, therefore, provides a recess on each side, for finger gripping purposes, as is clearly illustrated by the position of the finger shown in dotted lines in FIGURE 4.

In accordance with the present invention, it is significant that, in the non-depressed condition of the ink reservoir pads (see FIGURE 4), the side walls 37 and 38 of the stamp extend significantly higher than the tops of the end walls and side walls 13 of the box 11 and also than the tops of the divider walls 14. In this manner, the user of the stamps may conveniently grip the holding portion of the stamp, without any risk of dirtying his fingers on the ink pad. If the stamp is depressed downwardly against the ink pad for better inking, the fingers are still protected because the space between the divider walls 14 is too small to allow for the passage of the fingers along with the movement of the stamp. Therefore, the user is well protected from getting ink on his fingers.

As shown in FIGURE 4, the operative portion of the stamp 22d includes a bottom plate 45 which is secured to the lower extremities of the end walls 35 and 36 and side walls 37 and 38, as a separate element of the structure and to which a print, bearing number 46, is fastened.

The lid 15 of the stamp holder 10 will now be described. The lid 15, as shown in FIGURE 4, includes a fiat top wall 16, and side and end walls of which 17 is illustrative. A peripheral flange 18 extends about the extremity of the side and end wall 17, providing a peripheral shoulder 19 on the interior extremity of the side and end walls. When the lid is closed, as hown by dotted lines in FIG- URE 4, the top Wall 16 is disposed a very short distance above the upper extremities 39 and 41 of the various stamps in the stamp set. In that position, the flange 18 projects downwardly over the outside surface of the outer walls 13 of the box 11. The peripheral shoulder 19, of

course, rests firmly upon the tops of the box walls 13, and in this manner, supports the lid.

The alternative position of the lid is shown in FIG- URES 2 and 4. In this alternative position the lid is turned upside down so that its top wall 16 provides a base for the entire stamp set. In this position the flange 18 of the side and end walls 17 of the lid 15 extends upwardly in engagement with the outer surface of the out side Walls 13 of the box 11. The peripheral shoulder 19 of the lid then engages the under surface of the bottom wall 12 of the box, around its peripheral edge, to provide vertical support for the box and the stamps. One advantage of using the lid in this manner is that it raises the box to a high position and makes the stamps more readily accessible when their use is required. Another advantage is that the lid is kept close at hand at all times, which makes it convenient to put the lid back on the box when the tamps are not in use, so as to protect the ink supply; or to put the lid back on the box for rapid movement of the stamp set to another working location.

It should be pointed out that the box 11 as Well as the lid 15 may be formed from materials other than plastic materials. Non-ferrous metal is a suitable substitute. Further, the typical stamp 220. as seen in FIGURE 5 may also be modified to include horizontal rather than vertical corrugation along the walls 42. With such a modification, the typical stamp 22d may be extruded from nonferrous metals as well as from plastic materials, the end walls and 36 in turn being formed as end caps of cor-responding or different materials for snap engagement with the side walls 37 and 38, the top plate 40 and the bottom plate 45. Other suitable methods of assembly may be employed, if desired.

As a further modification, not shown, the pads 30 and 31 may be affixed directly to the bottom plate %5 of each typical stamp 22d with the print, which bears number .6 in FIGURE 4, in turn being fastened beneath the particular pad. With this arrangement, a permanently inked stamp may be provided, one in which the user is free to repeatedly apply the impression comprising the print 46 without intermittently ire-inking. To prevent the ink from flowing from the pad as would be the case in the event such a permanently inked stamp were to make contact with the inner surface of the bottom wall 12, a support surface, not shown, of suitable height may be provided along opposite walls forming the compartments of the box 11.

While the invention has herein been shown and described in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognized that departures may be made therefrom Within the scope of the invention, which is not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be accorded the full scope of the claim so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new in support of Letters Patent is:

A unitized stamp set comprising, in combination:

an integrally formed, substantially rectangular box including a horizontal bottom wall, upstanding end and side walls, and a plurality of divider walls rising vertically from said bottom wall to the same height as said end and side walls, said divider Walls being interconnected with said end and side walls and with each other so as to provide a plurality of separate, substantially rectangular stamp-holding compartments, at least one of said compartments extending the full length of said box and being of sufiicient width to accommodate only a single row of stamps;

a plurality of flexible ink reservoir pads, one disposed in the bottom of each of said compartments;

a plurality of stamps, at least one being disposed in each of said compartments, each of said stamps having a print-bearing portion on its lower extremity which normally rests upon the corresponding one of said ink reservoir pads;

each of said stamps being of a substantially rectangular block configuration and having sloping side walls which incline towards each other so that the upper portion of said stamp is narrower than the bottom portion, and having recesses on the upper portions of said side walls so as to provide a finger grip, the height of said divider walls, the thickness of said ink reservoir pads, and the height of said stamps below said recesses being such that said finger grips are disposed above the tops of said divider walls;

and an integrally formed lid having downwardly depending side and end walls whose vertical height is approximately equal to the height of said box walls and divider walls, said lid having an interior shoulder formed on the periphery of its side and end walls which is adapted to engage the side and end walls of said box when the same is closed by said lid, said shoulder of said lid being also adapted for engaging the peripheral edge of the undersurface of said bottom wall of said box when said lid is inverted and placed beneath said box for supporting the same;

said plurality of stamps including stamps of different Widths, and said box having compartments of different widths which receive respective ones of said stamps;

said one compartment of said box receiving a row of identical stamps which are of such width as not to permit convenient finger gripping of the stamp within the divider walls of said one compartment, but being conveniently removable by use of said finger grips.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 830,188 9/1906 Sternau 101333 1,237,538 8/1917 Michaud 101333 1,506,985 9/1924 Melind 101--405 1,516,960 11/1924 Faggen 101333 2,887,780 5/1959 Johnson 101-333 2,919,645 1/1960 Leeds a- 101-405 3,167,180 1/1965 Krernp 206-4520 3,227,079 1/1966 Muskin 101405 LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner. 

